1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to headgear and more particularly pertains to a new headgear with enhanced visibility for increasing the visibility of a wearer of the headgear to others especially in low light or no light conditions.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The use of headgear in the form of protective headgear and illuminated headgear is known in the prior art. Despite the numerous variations that have been disclosed in the prior art, it is believed that the known headgear does not provide optimal visibility for the wearer to those around the wearer, especially in low light or darkness conditions. In circumstances where a person is highly vulnerable to conditions such as moving traffic, the more visibility that a person is able to display to traffic the better for the person""s safety. Situations such as when a motorist or motorcyclist is present along the side of a road during a breakdown, or when a law enforcement officer is performing a traffic stop along the side of the road and walking close to traffic. Also, children at play may move around and even through traffic, and enhancement of the visibility of the child is desirable. Further, under some conditions it is desirable not only to enhance the visibility of a person but also to communicate information to those around the person without speaking to those around the person, or where those around are unable to hear any speech of the person. For example, a bicyclist or motorcyclist traveling down a road may desire to communicate with vehicles traveling in the traffic with the cyclist but may find that speaking and/or hand signals are ineffective in communicating with drivers of the other vehicles.
In these respects, the headgear with enhanced visibility according to the present invention substantially departs from the conventional concepts and designs of the prior art, and in so doing provides an apparatus primarily developed for the purpose of increasing the visibility of a wearer of the headgear to others, especially in low light or no light conditions.
In view of the foregoing, the present invention provides a new headgear with enhanced visibility wherein the same can be utilized for increasing the visibility of a wearer of the headgear to others, especially in low light or no light conditions.
To attain this benefit, the present invention generally comprises a shell for being worn on the head of the user. The headgear may also include a rear light transmitter on the rear of the shell, a forward light transmitter on the front of the shell, a top light transmitter on the top of the shell, and side light transmitters on each of the sides of the shell. The headgear may also include a message indicator mounted on the shell for displaying alphanumeric characters, and the display of the message indicator may be oriented in a direction extending rearwardly from the shell for permitting a person behind the wearer to view the display.
There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the invention in order that the detailed description thereof that follows may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are additional features of the invention that will be described hereinafter and which will form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto.
In this respect, before explaining at least one embodiment of the invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and to the arrangements of the components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting.
As such, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the conception, upon which this disclosure is based, may readily be utilized as a basis for the designing of other structures, methods and systems for carrying out the several purposes of the present invention. It is important, therefore, that the claims be regarded as including such equivalent constructions insofar as they do not depart from the spirit and scope of the present invention.
The invention disclosed herein provides a heretofore unknown level of visibility to the wearer in low light or no light conditions for enhancing the safety of persons in vulnerable positions such as motorists and cyclists on the side of a road, law enforcement personnel conducting traffic stops, and children playing around or alongside traffic. The headgear of the invention is highly suited to visibility in all or virtually all directions around the wearer, and also may provide a means for communicating with those around the wearer when audible communication is difficult or impossible.